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Variants
'Variant: Gritty Hit Points' Your hitpoints equal your Constitution score. At each level, gain either your Constitution or Wisdom modifier to hit points. You do not gain additional hit points from classes. 'Variant: Comeliness' Comliness (Com) is an objective measure of beauty, and therefore pretty useless. But, some people like to know, ergo... Comeliness, rather than Charisma, determines initial social impressions. In this case, Charisma really is that unmeasurable weight to a person's words, that causes revolutions and acts of unspeakable evil. Comeliness, on the other hand, is what Helen of Troy had. There are two ways to determine Comliness. #Roll 4d6, just like any other ability score. You can always choose to take a lower number instead. #Comeliness is derived from your other ability scores. Take your highest physical ability score modifier and your highest mental ability score modifier. Add them together, and add the sum to 10. Your Comliness can be any number between 1 and that number (inclusive). Add in any racial modifiers (see below). The result is your comliness score. Comeliness is relative to humans; racial modifiers do not apply between members of the same race. Beastfolk: Boarfolk: -2, Lizardfolk: -2, Sharkfolk: -2, Spiderfolk: -3, Urds: -4 Dwarves: Cloud: +1, Deep +0, Mountain +0 Elves: Cave: +2, Dark +4, High +3, Low +2, Wood +2 Gnolls: Cave: -2, Low -4, Wood -2 Goblinoids: Bugbears: -2, Goblins -2, Hobgoblins +0 Humans: Mermaids: +2, Merrow -1; other variants at +0 'Variant: Complex Initiative' #'Order': Determine Initiative scores (10 + Dexterity modifier + miscellaneous modifiers), and organize in descending order. In the case of ties, preference goes to the larger miscellaneous modifier, then higher Dexterity score, then to the PC over NPC, then player's choice or leader/minion status. Each individual initiative number is referred to as an 'initiative count.' #'Declare': In ascending order, PCs and NPCs declare their actions and target(s). For example: 'Charge the first troll,' or 'Cast a spell on that area and move,' or 'Move, and use a maneuver on that orc.' :: Declarations: :: Move (including as part of a skill check) :: Attack :: Charge :: Combat Technique :: Use Umzamo :: Cast Spell :: Other Action (retrieve item, drink potion, use special ability, etc) #'Act': In descending order, the PCs and NPCs act. Should a creature's action be interrupted (because an enemy has died, because the knight has moved into the path of the troll's charge, etc), creatures can alter their target (but not their action). For example, if that knight moves between the troll and the mage, the troll obviously can't complete its charge against the mage. However, it might be able to charge the knight. If it can't, then it should try to preserve the intent of its stated actions (Jump over the knight and attack the mage? Move and attack the knight?) There are four sub-rules within initiative: #'Ready': A character can declare a ready action. By so doing, that character spends their standard action preparing a conditional immediate action. Example: 'I ready an action to stab the first creature that charges me with my pike.' #'Delay': A character can declare a delay action. In doing so, they are taken out of the initiative order until they state the desire to re-enter the initiative order, at which point their initiative score becomes whatever the current number is, and they act immediately (but not interrupting another creature's turn). #'Iterative Turns': Certain creatures (those of Huge size and larger, those under the effects of a haste ''spell) have multiple turns within a single round. These itinerate initiatives take place at -5(/-10/-15/-20, as neccessary) of their original initiative score. They must declare all of their actions at the appropriate times. However, they cannot repeat any declarations (excepting move and different special abilities). #'Spellcasting': While all actions take time, spellcasting is subject to spell disruption via damage. Therefore, the following model will be used to simulate the time it takes to cast spells. Generally speaking, a normal spell (standard action to cast) will take a number of initiative counts equal to twice the spell's mana cost. Spells that take a full round action to cast will take a number of initiative counts equal to twice times the spell's mana cost +10. 'Variant: Gritty (Low magic, non-epic) Feel free to use any or all of these rules to recreate "fantasy f---ing Vietnam." If one feels particularly Gygaxian, one can make players roll stats in order, without a seventh roll. Do not add Constitution score to hp at first level. If you feel merciful, maximum hp at 1st level. The massive damage threshold is lowered to character's Constitution score, rather than 50. The resulting Fortitude save is against DC 15 + damage over threshold. PCs are limited to 5th level, and the slow XP table should be used. PCs should be, if not forbidden, at least encouraged not to take the Gish or Mage classes. If they are allowed to take those classes, then they should not have access to the Enchanting sphere. It is recommended that PCs, at least, be prohibited from taking Heritage and Planar feats, and the following feats: Craft Construct, Ghost Hunter, Graft Flesh, Inscrutable Mind, Mage Slayer, Magical Talent, Ring the Golden Bell, Shadowmaster, Shapechanger, Skindancer, Throwing Your Sword Always Works, Wind of the Heavens and Winddancer. The Low Power table should be used when randomly generating characters. '''Variant: Mana Recovery In this variant, when creatures are rendered tired/fatigued/exhausted from mana use/loss, they recover to their threshold + 1 after removing the condition. So a character above 1/4 mana but below 1/2 mana recovers to 1/2 mana + 1 after ten minutes of rest. A character above 0 mana, but below 1/4 mana recovers to 1/4 mana + 1 after an hour of rest, and to 1/2 mana + 1 after an additional ten minutes. However, to recover from 0 mana to 1 mana, a character must rest for eight hours. Recovering from 1/2 +1 mana to full mana takes eight hours. This is how Harry Dresden goes from near-collapsed (1 mana) to mostly capable (1/2 + 1 mana) after a short nap. 'Variant: Riposte' When you make a successful parry attempt, and beat the attacker's roll by more than 5, you can make a counterattack at your normal attack bonus. You cannot activate feats or Umzamo dice on this counterattack. 'Variant: Tiring Combat' Fighting is tough work. A creature can engage in combat for a number of rounds equal to it's Constitution score - 10 without penalty. After that, they must make an Endurance check (DC 10 + previous checks made) or become tired. After becoming tired, once the interval (Con score - 10) elapses again, they must make an Endurance check (DC 15 + previous checks made) or become fatigued. Once the interval passes again, another Endurance check (DC 20 + previous checks made) must be passed to avoid exhaustion. 'Variant: Combat Advantage' In this variant, the various combat maneuvers are removed and replaced by the combat advantage system. To gain combat advantage, make a CMB check, opposed by your opponent's CMD. If you succeed, you gain a +1 to attack and damage against them. You can increase the bonus of your combat advantage with multiple CMB checks, to a limit of your BAB. They can try to gain back combat advantage by making CMB checks, with each success reducing your bonus by one, until it hits zero and they start gaining combat advantage against you. Not attacking the same target for a round makes you lose any combat advantage against them. If a target scores a critical hit against you, you lose any combat advantage against them. Multiple opponents can try to gain combat advantage against the same target; the maximum that any one opponent can benefit from is their BAB, but the absolute limit is determined by the character with the highest BAB. If an opponent disengages from the fight, the combat advantage is not affected, unless this would affect the highest BAB, in which case the advantage is reduced to the next highest character's BAB. Example: Casa and Andromache are confronting an ogre. Casa's BAB is +3, Andromache's is +4. With four successful CMB checks over two rounds, they manage to increase their combat advantage to +4. However, only Andromache can benefit from that +4; Casa can only benefit from a +3 to attack and damage. The ogre, however, must make four successful CMB checks to remove their combat advantage against him. If Andromache charges across the battlefield to heal Ranos, Casa cannot maintain the +4 advantage (because her BAB is only +3), but the advantage does not otherwise decrease. 'Variant: Aggravated Damage' Elemental and Force damage is slow to heal, healing at half the normal rate, and requiring twice as much magical healing. Damage that pierces damage reduction that you have is likewise slow to heal (including damage reduction from armor). 'Variant: Drama/Laugh Points' Drama Points: Every time I tell you to 'make life easy for me, and go with the story,' you get a Drama point. You can use that to influence later story decisions, or to reroll any one roll. Laugh points: Every time you crack my stoic facade with unmanly giggling, you get a Laugh point. Spend Laugh points to allow you to impose the Rule of Funny over the ruleset, or to reroll any one roll. 'Variant: Traits' Select up to three traits from the list below, excluding obviously contradictory traits. Abrasive: +1 Intimidate, -2 Diplomacy Absent-minded: +1 on any one Knowledge subskill, -2 Observation. Aggressive: +2 Initiative, -1 AC. Coward: +1 AC, -2 saves verses fear. Detached: +1 Will, -1 Reflex. Dishonest: +1 Deception, -2 Diplomacy. Distinctive: +1 Reputation, -2 Deception. Easygoing: +1 Gather Information, -1 Intimidate and Sense Motive. Focused: +1 Concentration, -2 Observation. Hardy: +1 Fortitude, -1 Reflex. Honest: +1 Diplomacy, -1 Deception and Sense Motive. Illiterate: +1 on any skill based on a physical attribute, illiterate. Musclebound: +1 Strength-based skill checks and ability checks, -2 Dexterity-based skill checks and ability checks. Passionate: +1 Fortitude, -1 Will. Plucky: +1 Will, -1 Fortitude. Quick: +5ft base land speed, -1 hit point per level. Reckless: +1 melee damage, -1 melee attack. Relentless: +2 on Endurance checks, any time you would become fatigued, become exhausted instead. Saddleborn: +1 Ride, -2 Diplomacy Scrapper: +1 improvised weapon, natural weapon and unarmed attack rolls, -1 all other melee attack rolls. Skinny: +2 Acrobatics, -1 CMB. Slow: +1 hit point per level, -5ft base land speed. Spellgifted: +1 MPM with one sphere of magic, -1 MPM with all other spheres. Stout: +1 CMB, -2 Acrobatics. Suspicious: +1 Sense Motive, -2 Diplomacy. Torpid: +1 Will, -2 Initiative. Treasure Sense: +1 Observation to find treasure, -1 Observation otherwise. You've got some kind of fifth sense when it comes to treasure. Unfortunately, by some freak of nature, you were born without taste buds. Uncivilized: +2 Handle Animal, -1 Deception and Gather Information. Unremarkable: +2 Deception, -1 Reputation. 'Variant: Reputation' Certain actions (completing quests, assassinating the king, becoming a lord) will raise a characters reputation score. The various Social Knowledges or Gather Information can identify persons travelling incognito (DC 30 - Reputation score + difference between their Deception and Observation checks). Reputation functions on a scale from 0 to 13, along the same lines as morale.